THOU ART THE MAN | AdventAI

Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association · Battle Creek, Mich. · Apr 5, 1877

THOU ART THE MAN.

One of the hardest things in the ministry of the word of God, is to bring it home to the conscience of the individual. And in speaking to a large assembly of people, those portions of truth which are adapted to one particular class are almost sure to be appropriated by another, while those for whom the admonitions are especially intended pass them by without consideration. If we preach against covetousness, and enjoin liberality, old deacon Hunks, who sits in the corner, wraps himself up in his long robe and says to himself, “Well, that doesn’t mean me, I’m sure;” while the next day, perhaps, we shall find that some dear, earnest, generous soul, who has been for years habitually casting all her living into the treasury of the Lord, is aroused and alarmed by the thought of being covetous, and so proceeds at once to make some fresh sacrifice for the sake of benefiting others around her, who, perhaps, are better able to aid her than she is to assist them.

If we rebuke levity and vanity; instead of our words’ reaching the hearts of the gay and high-headed and light-hearted, they fall with chilling weight upon the tender conscience of some poor soul, whose smile on emerging from regions of darkness is fresh and fragrant as a May-flower creeping out from among departing snows, but who is now chilled and discouraged, and sinks back again into despondency and gloom. If we rebuke worldly and excessive care for the things of time and sense, the thrifty worldling at whom we aim our shaft passes it unnoticed, while his neighbor, who is shiftless and thriftless, and who was never busy enough to earn an honest living for himself and his family, picks up our words and uses them to excuse himself in continued idleness and indifference, under pretense of trusting in the Lord.

There seems to be only one way of meeting this universal tendency of fallen nature to evade and disregard the divine precepts, and that is by direct personal appeal to the parties concerned. David would have listened approvingly to any number of homilies treating of justice, mercy, purity, morality, and the fear of God, and gone away neither better nor worse for the instruction which he received; but when the prophet Nathan laid hold upon his conscience with the grip of honest faithfulness, and said to him, “Thou art the man!” he quailed before the servant of God, and reverently accepted the message which he brought.

“I taught you publicly and from house to house,” said the apostle; his method of labor was “warning every man, and entreating every man,” that he might present every man perfect in Christ Jesus. It is difficult to remedy personal faults by public exhortations. Sometimes we may attain our end, but often it will be much more easily accomplished by direct, personal endeavor. We need to take men by the hand, to speak to them face to face, kindly but faithfully pointing out their errors, showing them their wrongs, and entreating them to turn from every false way. We may fear rebuff, but usually our fears are vain, and if our reproofs are disregarded, there is still some satisfaction. The man of God who rose from his bed to reprove a blasphemer, and only received in return scoffs and taunts, when asked what he got for his pains, answered, “A soft pillow.” And when in the fear of God, and in the spirit and love of Christ we have done our duty to persons who are going astray, we win for ourselves a quiet heart, a soft pillow, a conscience void of offense toward God or man.

But often the seed that is sown in these private conversations becomes fruitful beyond all our expectations; since it does not depend upon our own power or standing to give force to what we say. The child may sow seed which shall bud and blossom and bring forth plenteous fruit. A little hand may place in the soil the seed which shall spring up and reach gigantic stature, and live when we are dead. Thus the word which we speak with trembling may be made powerful by the blessing of the Lord, and our prayers may be answered and our tears rewarded by the turning of sinners from the error of their ways, and the joy that is in Heaven when they come home to God.—The Wayside.